1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to tracking User Equipment (UE) amongst various types of network access, and more particularly, to correlating UE to a particular subscriber during handover transitions.
2. Description of the Related Art
The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) organization specifies the architecture of mobile cellular networks like Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). The latest mobile network architecture defined by the 3GPP is called Evolved 3GPP Packet Switched Domain—also known as the Evolved Packet System (EPS).
The EPS combines an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network that is able to connect a new generation of an access network technology called Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) as well as the pre-successor of the E-UTRAN called Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN). The 3GPP EPS is also able to provide connectivity to mobile terminals (also known as User Equipment(s) (UEs)) attached non-3GPP access networks.
3GPP networks also provide for inter-connection between the EPC and non-3GPP access networks. While the 3GPP access networks are based on access technologies standardized by the 3GPP organization, non-3GPP access networks are based on access technologies defined by other organizations like Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2). For example two technologies defined by the IEEE that may interwork with the EPC are WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network), i.e. the IEEE standard 802.11 family, and WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access), also known as the IEEE standard 802.16 family.
Conventional mobile electronic devices such as mobile phones, tablets, computers, etc., are often equipped to communicate on both 3GPP communication networks as well as non-3GPP access networks (e.g., WLAN, etc.). In fact, mobile data offloading refers to the use of complementary network technologies for delivering data originally targeted for 3GPP communication networks. Rules triggering the mobile offloading action can be set by either an end-user (mobile subscriber) or an operator. The code operating on the rules resides in an end-user device, in a server, or is divided between the two. End users use data offloading for data service cost control, the availability of higher bandwidth and the like. Operators use data offloading to ease congestion of cellular networks. However, when subscriber UE transfers to/from 3GPP access from/to non-3GPP access (e.g., untrusted 3GPP access) subscriber information is typically lost. That is, tracking subscribers during UE transfers between networks is difficult at best, which affects accuracy when monitoring key performance indicators, Quality of Service (QoS), and other operating metrics for subscribers.